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OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Researchers at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center are exploring a new high-tech treatment for a common heart rhythm disorder.
Atrial fibrillation affects more than 2.5 million Americans. With atrial fibrillation, rapid, disorganized electrical signals cause the heart's two upper chambers to beat very fast and irregularly. Atrial fibrillation can cause strokes and even death.
Current treatments involve drugs or surgery, but a new approach is being investigated that focuses on stimulating a nerve that exists on both sides of the body and plays an important role in helping the heart beat within a safe range.
Dr. Stavros Stavrakis and his team are evaluating the therapeutic potential of low-level vagus nerve stimulation in the treatment of atrial fibrillation. The approach utilizes a stimulator surgically implanted around the vagus nerve.
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